


Reliving the Past

by Duochanfan



Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: Angst, M/M, Murder
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-09-02
Updated: 2018-02-12
Packaged: 2018-04-18 17:17:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 24,258
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4714082
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Duochanfan/pseuds/Duochanfan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Twenty years ago John walked into the family home and found his father murdered in the living room. Now he and Sherlock are pulled into a case that brings up bad memories for John, memories that he wishes he could forget. Will he and Sherlock be able to solve this case and maybe have a look at John's fathers?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I don’t own BBC Sherlock, they are the creative works of Steven Moffat, Mark Gatiss and of course the wonderful Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
> 
> Well, here is another new story for you to read. I do hope you will enjoy it!

**Reliving the Past**

**Chapter One**

John shifted his backpack a little higher on his shoulder. Another day at school was over, he had to get home and change, he had rugby practice a little later and he needed to grab his gear before heading over to the fields. John sighed a little, his mother had loved coming to his games, but three years ago the cancer finally took her from him and his family, she had been fighting it for years, but had lost the battle. John walked up the garden path and pulled out his key and unlocked the front door.

"Dad!" he called out as he walked inside and shut the door.

The house was quiet, which was unusual, it was his dads day off from work, and had been for a while, as he liked to go and watch John at Rugby practice. Harry wouldn't be there, since she had moved out a couple of months ago. He dropped his bag on the floor and took off his coat as he then walked further into the house. John frowned as he looked around, things didn't seem right.

"Dad!" he called out again, wondering what was going on, normally his dad would have answer after the first call. He always liked to make sure that his kids were welcomed home, no mater how long they had been out of the house. John walked though to the living room and stopped, looking around, eyes wide.

The place had been trashed, pictures that had been hanging on the wall were now broken frames and their pictures scattered over the floor. John began to shake a little as he saw some blood splattered up the wall. He walked further into the room, "Dad," he called out softly, his voice beginning to shake. He was afraid of what he was going to see as he walked a little more into the room.

"Dad," he said with a broken sob. His dad was lying on the floor of the living room, a large pool of blood surrounded him and eyes glazed over in death were staring up at the ceiling. John rushed over and knelt down, he reached out and shook his dad's shoulder calling, "Dad, please, no."

John reached out a hand to try and find a pulse, "Dad," John sobbed as his head bowed and his eyes closed as tears began to fall.

XxXxX

"Dad," John called out softly as he shot up in bed. He looked around his room in Baker Street and sighed. He looked to his watch and saw the date, "Twenty years, twenty fucking years and I still don't have an answer as to who killed him," he muttered angrily, he had been tempted over the year that he had known Sherlock to ask him to look into it. He had set it aside as he didn't think Sherlock would want to.

John flipped the quilt off him and sat on the edge of the bed. He ran his hands over his face and sighed as he glanced to the time. It was too early to try and get back to sleep. Then again, with that dream, he knew he would have a hard time. The memory of finding his dad played on his mind all the time, but it was normally worse when it came closer to the anniversary of his murder.

John stood up and grabbed for his robe, it was a little chilly, but was beginning to warm up a little. He walked out of his room and down the stairs to the living room. He looked over to the sofa and saw Sherlock lying there once more. He rolled his eyes, wondering what had kept him up this time. They weren't working on a case at all, as they had only just finished one.

"Tea?" John asked as he headed towards the kitchen.

Sherlock was a little startled to hear John's voice as he had been half in his mind palace, "Yes, please," he replied.

John nodded his head as he filled the kettle and set up two mugs, humming in annoyance when he found a finger in one of them, "Wish you would keep the limbs and organs out of the mugs at least," he muttered as he shot a glance towards the living room.

"Hmm," Sherlock hummed, not giving John a hint if he would actually do it this time or not. John didn't believe he would, he had never listened to him before about it.

John finished making the tea and walked into the living room, handing one of the mugs over to Sherlock as he went over to his own chair and sat down. He put his mug on the side table and leaned back. He was still tired, but didn't think he would be able to sleep any time soon.

Sherlock watched his friend, he noted the old sweat that was on John's pale skin. There was an air of grief around him that Sherlock couldn't figure out where it was coming from. As far as Sherlock knew no one close to John had died recently. He sat up so he could see his friend better and reached for his mug and blew on the hot liquid before taking a tentative sip.

Sherlock put it down and stood up. He walked over to his desk, John opening his eyes and watching him. He picked up his Violin and bow and began to play one of the pieces that John seemed to relax better too. Sherlock had studied his friends habits when he played, noting which piece calmed and relaxed the other man.

Over the next hour Sherlock played piece after piece, only stopping to take a sip of his quickly cooling tea. He watched John as he began to relax and smile a little. Sherlock stopped playing and gave a little bow as John clapped softly.

"Thank you Sherlock," he smiled to him as Sherlock went over to the sofa and flopped down on it, sitting up to see his friend.

"Would you like to talk about what is bothering you?" he asked him finally. He had wanted to ask when he had first saw the other walk in. John had looked upset and grieved over something.

John shook his head, "No, not really Sherlock. Not this time. All I want to do is to forget this one. I know I never will, I know, but for now, I'd rather not go through it again," he told him, sighing deeply.

They sat in silence for a few moments until John got up once more to make them both some tea. He walked back in and handed one over to Sherlock before sitting down again. John was still slightly agitated. Sherlock wondered if it was because he had asked him.

"Would you like me to play again after I have drank my tea?" he asked John, as he looked to the man, observing him.

John blinked a few times, his mind had been elsewhere. He smiled to Sherlock for a moment as he thought over, "I wouldn't mind. But if you don't want to that's fine," he answered him.

Sherlock smiled and nodded, "I don't mind. It is not often that I have a captive audience. I do love to play for those that appreciate it."

John chuckled a little, a smile making its way onto his face, "You know Mrs Hudson would love nothing more than to sit in here and listen to you, and I would as well."

Sherlock smiled back, "I know, but it isn't often that I can do so, we do have The Work after all."

John nodded his head, "I know."

The two went silence once more as Sherlock drank his tea as soon as it was cool enough for him to do so without burning his tongue. "Well," he said as he stood up, "I hope you enjoy these ones," he told John as he went over to his desk and picked up his violin and bow once more. Testing the strings for a second he took a breath and began to play.

John sat there watching as Sherlock began to sway with the music he was playing. It was always a pleasure to watch him play. Sherlock tended to get lost in the music after a while. A small smile would appear on his face, not the fake one he would often show, but a true one. The man would forget that people were around him. John began to relax himself as he watched the slightly swaying man as he went from piece to piece.

Sherlock opened his eyes after a while and smiled when he saw that John had fallen asleep in the chair. He stopped playing, putting the violin away. He went over to the sofa and grabbed the blanket from it and settled over the older man. He took the mugs out and then went back to the sofa, settling down to watch over his friend and to make sure that nothing else would bother him in the couple of hours he had left to sleep before it was morning.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own BBC Sherlock, they are the creative works of Steven Moffat, Mark Gatiss and of course the wonderful Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
> 
> Back from Alcon, two fics wont be updated this week as I haven't had time to write them.

**Reliving the Past**

**Chapter Two**

John walked around the living room picking up some more of Sherlock's papers. The man had been in a frenzy that morning as soon as John had woken up in the chair. Papers had gone flying as he tried to find the notes he had made on one of his past experiments. John picked up another bunch of papers and looked through them, reading what it was about before letting it join all the others about that particular subject. There was an order to the chaos after all.

Sherlock was in the kitchen, experimenting on something. Though John didn't know what just that a lot of the cleaning products were out and there was a lot of bits of flesh on the table. John carried on cleaning the living room before he headed into the kitchen to see if there was anything in there that needed tidying up. He closed his eyes for a moment and prayed for patience.

"Sherlock," he said with a sigh as he walked over to the table.

Sherlock looked up for a moment, he had taken over the whole of the kitchen table this time, "Yes John?" he asked him.

"What are you doing now?" he asked him as he began to clean up some of the things that were on the counters, not daring to disturb what Sherlock was using. He would rather not have a lecture about the importance of uncontaminated results. It wasn't his fault that Sherlock never labelled anything.

Sherlock looked to him and could see the genuine interest on the mans face so he answered him, "I am seeing what dissolves the flesh better."

John frowned, "Well, that would be Lye," he said as he looked to him.

Sherlock smiled and nodded, "Yes that would work quite well I know. But I am trying to find out which household products would work best," he told him what he was working on.

John nodded his head, "all right, just make sure you make a list of everything that you use up so I can buy more," he told him, a smile on his face as he carried on cleaning. The smell of what was going on behind him not bothering him. He had gotten used to the many smells that would drift around the flat.

John finished cleaning and sighed, wondering what he could do now. He was trying to keep busy, keep his mind of what he had dreamt about last night. He knew that Harry would be calling him soon. She always did, to rant about never finding out who had murdered their father, and that John should have gotten home earlier. John looked at the time and grinned, there was something he could do. It was almost four o'clock, so he could always start dinner and let it cook slowly.

"Sherlock," he called out to his friend as he turned to face him, "Can you start tidying up and putting things away so I can make a start on dinner?" he asked him.

Sherlock looked up and shook his head, "John, surely it is too early to eat," he said as he carried on with his experiment.

"I want to make a start at least," he told him as he started looking through the cupboards.

Sherlock huffed a little, "John I am board, at this moment in time this is keeping me entertained, I just need some space on the table for this," he told him. Hoping that the compromise would work. He had noted that John had barely stopped moving since he had woken up that morning. What ever it was that he had dreamed about was still affecting the man.

"Have you checked your emails at all?" John wondered, hoping that maybe a small case had come in that Sherlock could work on for an hour or two.

"Yes, all boring, each of them were small little cases that I didn't even need to leave the laptop for. I solved them and sent an email back to them," he told him as he watched John start to make dinner, he could see that it would take a while to cook as soon as he finished preparing it.

"Anything interesting at all?" John asked him as he carried on preparing dinner.

"No, nothing, they were all so boring John, not even interesting enough for me to do. I only did them because I know that you would want me to do a few of them at least," he told his friend as he moved a few things around on the table and disinfected half of it to make sure that they would have somewhere to eat a little later on.

John went quiet as he made dinner, he put the dish in the oven and stood straight. He turned to the table and smiled when he saw that part of it was clean, "Will the rest of it be cleaned in half hour?" he asked.

Sherlock looked to him and gave a put upon sigh, "Yes, I suppose I will, I shall need a shelf in the cupboard as I do not believe that you will want anything in the fridge," he said with a smirk over to John.

"Damn right on that, rather not have the possibility of anything contaminating our food. I'll prepare a cupboard for you to use, just make sure that you clean it out all the time. I don't want to find it all rotten in there," he told him as he went to one of the cupboard that was hung up on its own and cleaned it out of the few things that were in there and layered it with a bit of cling film. He would need to find some heavy duty plastic as well and a way to seal the doors so none of the smell would get out.

Sherlock watched him for a moment and nodded his thanks when John walked past into the living room. He grabbed his laptop and walked back in the kitchen and sat at the clean part of the table. He started typing up an old case that he had meant to get done a few days ago.

"Boys!" came a call as Mrs Hudson walked in with a tray of tea for them all, "I thought we could all do with a nice cup of tea, I've been hearing someone walking around all day up here," she said as she placed the tray down and poured them all some.

"Thank you Mrs Hudson," John smiled to her, as Sherlock gave her his thanks as well.

"How are you boys?" she asked as she sat down and wrinkled her nose at what Sherlock was doing.

"We're both fine Mrs Hudson," John replied, smiling to her, "Want to stay for dinner, I've made plenty?" he asked her.

"Oh how wonderful, don't mind if I do," she smiled and nodded, she looked to the mess that Sherlock had made and shook her head, "Is that going to be cleaned up before dinner?"

Sherlock rolled his eyes and nodded his head, "Yes, John has prepared a place for me to put them all. I will be doing so in a moment."

"Good lad," she smiled to him.

John chuckled as he got up and checked on dinner, setting up a few plates for them and something to drink with dinner. Nothing fancy, but something that he had in the kitchen for a while. Thankfully without attracting Sherlock attention to experiment on. Sherlock stood up after a few more minutes and began to put everything away.

Mrs Hudson looked to him as she said softly, "Really Sherlock, you should do that type of thing at a lab."

Sherlock nodded his head, "While a lab would be the ideal environment for most of my experiments Mrs Hudson. I do not have regular access to one that I can use at any time of the day or night. So I make do with the kitchen here," he told her as he began to sterilise the table once more knowing that John would insist and bother him if he didn't do it.

"Maybe we can get a few things in here that would make it easier," John suggested, "if we had a place for you to do that then you wouldn't have to have everything everywhere. Not only that but a secure place to put your experiments would be welcomed," he said as he thought about it a little and brought out dinner and dished it up.

Sherlock cleaned his hands and sat back down at the table, "True, I shall see what can be done."

John nodded and handed the plates out and a glass of wine to go with it. He sat down, relaxing a little more with every passing minute of normality that surrounded him. It wasn't often that Mrs Hudson would join them for dinner, as they would often be working on a case, or be out at Angelo's for dinner. It was nice to see the old motherly woman relax with them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the wonderful comment and the kudos, you guys are the best ever. I do hope you have enjoyed this chapter as well!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own BBC Sherlock, they are the creative works of Steven Moffat, Mark Gatiss and of course the wonderful Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
> 
> Well, wedding over and now NaNoWriMo is about to start, be warned, I might not update each week during October and November. I am going to try and do so.

**Reliving the Past**

**Chapter Three**

John cleaned up the rest of the dinner plates as Mrs Hudson took down the tea set she had brought up with her. She said her goodbyes, leaving the two men alone once more. John looked over to Sherlock who was already bringing his experiments back out of the cupboard that they had been put in. He couldn't help the small shake of his head as he watched. He finished his clean up and was happy to see that Sherlock had left part of the table empty for him to use, he was going to go into the living room and use the desk to work, but he enjoyed being in Sherlock's presence when he was typing up old cases.

John opened up the laptop and woke it up, he looked over to Sherlock and smiled a little before going back to typing. Sherlock noticed the look and asked, "What was that for?"

"Nothing," John said as innocently as he could.

Sherlock narrowed his eyes as he got up and walked over to where John was and read over his shoulder, "Such drivel John," he huffed at what he read and then went back to where he was sitting, "surely you have better things to say than that."

John chuckled, "Well, it's true, you do," he smiled a little and went back.

Sherlock just rolled his eyes and carried on with his experiment. The two were quiet, with John occasionally looking over to him. Sherlock would often prompt him to read what he was writing, and telling John he shouldn't romanticise it. John just smirked to him and carried on, ignoring him and telling him that they were getting more cases because of his blog than anything else. The two looked up as they heard someone running up the stairs to their flat.

"Lestrade," Sherlock grinned, excited about the prospect of a case for them to work on.

Lestrade through the door and looked around the living room for a moment before noticing that they were in the kitchen, "hey," he greeted with a strained smile as he walked over to the two of them.

"Case?" Sherlock asked as he looked over to him, not wishing to seem to eager.

"Yeah," he nodded, "It looks like a simple break in gone wrong, but it just doesn't feel right to me. The dad's dead, no mother around, teenage daughter found him when she came home from school," he told Sherlock, hoping he would take it.

Sherlock looked to him and rolled his eyes at the man, "Honestly Lestrade, they are the most boring cases out there," John winced at that, something that Sherlock noticed out of the corner of his eye.

"Please Sherlock, there just something off on this one and I really can't pin point it. Just come and have a look at least," Lestrade pleaded a little with the man.

John looked between the two of them and said softly, "Sherlock, please do this one, think of the daughter, a lot of these case are never solved."

Sherlock looked to him and could see that wasn't the only reason that he wanted him to take the case. Lestrade looked between the two of them and sighed as he said, "please Sherlock."

"You said you were bored earlier, and this will give you something to do, so why don't you take it?" John said, brining up Sherlock's boredom from before dinner.

Sherlock gave a small sigh and nodded his head, "Very well Lestrade, we shall take the case. Send the details to my phone and we shall follow you down."

Lestrade shook his head, he didn't know why Sherlock never wanted to hear the address, but he did as he was asked sent them, "You could always ride with me," he made the suggestion.

"We'll get a taxi," Sherlock said as he gave a look to the man.

Lestrade nodded his head as he said, "right then, I'll see you both there in a bit."

Sherlock nodded his head and then looked over to John, "Shall we go John," he said as he stood up from the table and went to grab his coat.

"Not yet you don't," John said as he looked to his friend as he saved his work and shut down the laptop.

Sherlock turned to him, wondering what John could be on about, "Why not?" he asked him, frowning.

John gave a pointed look to the mess on the table. Sherlock sighed and went back to it and began to clean it up. John helped a little as well, cleaning and disinfecting the table. He knew that Sherlock didn't want to do this case, so he didn't make too much of a fuss of helping him. It was John's way of saying thank you. Just the thought of someone else going through what he had done when he had found his dad, it saddened him.

Sherlock finished putting it all away and then walked to John as he finished. He wanted to ask why John wanted him to take this case. He observed his friend for a moment and thought better of asking anything. He could see that John was tense again, and the relaxed air about him had totally gone since Lestrade had mentioned the case.

"Shall we go now?" Sherlock asked, his voice soft.

John turned to him and nodded, "Yeah, I think we should, Lestrade may be wondering where we are since we're taking longer than normal to get to him," he smiled a little, though Sherlock could see that it was slightly forced.

"Yes, though it is your fault, you made us clean up before we go anywhere," Sherlock smiled back to him, hoping that it would help John relax a little.

"Maybe, but it needed to be done, you never know how long we might be out for and I would rather not come back to find that stinking up the place," John joke, though not relaxing that much as they walked out of the flat and headed own the stairs.

The door to 221A opened up and Mrs Hudson walked out and smiled, "You boys going out?"

"Yes Mrs Hudson, John has insisted that I take a case. I don't think it will be very interesting but John believes that I should, so I have," Sherlock said, though John could see that he was only mock complaining about taking the case.

"Oh, behave Sherlock," Mrs Hudson admonished him lightly.

"Exactly," John smiled a little, "you were complaining that you were bored before we had dinner, so this is something that you can do, so shut up," he grinned at the end. Though Sherlock and Mrs Hudson could ell that it was a little forced.

"I know John, they leave a lot behind but can be hard to track," he said as he headed for the door.

Mrs Hudson walked with them and gave them each a kiss on the cheek, "Just be careful, you never know what you might come across with this, so please be careful," she told them, a look of worry entering her eyes. She couldn't help but do so, she had seen them come back from a few case battered and bruised and even had to take clothes down to the hospital because one of them had been hurt badly enough to require medical attention for more than a few stitches.

"We will Mrs Hudson, we always try our best to be careful, we know we worry you," John said kindly as he gave her a little kiss, Sherlock quickly doing the same as he opened the front door and walked out of the house.

John smiled to her one last time as she stood at the doorstep as Sherlock called for a taxi. It didn't take long for one to stop at the kerb and for the two of them to get in. Mrs Hudson waved her hand and then closed the front door as the two of them were driven out of sight.

The elderly woman gave a little sigh as she walked up to their flat. She liked to give it a bit of a tidy when they were on a case, even if it was only for the day. She wasn't their housekeeper, but she couldn't help but take care of the two of them. Sherlock was just helpless in her eyes half the time, he would forget what day it was and then forget that he needed to eat. John, when he first limped in she couldn't help but want to mother the man, he looked as though he was at the end of his rope. Sherlock soon brought a spark to the man and she was forever glad that the two of them had met, they brought out the best in each other. She smiled as she looked around and noted that the place was clean, but it could do with a vacuum so she went down and got her own and got to work, she had to take care of her boys, she just hoped this case would bring the spark back to John, his smiles had been fake when they had dinner together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the wonderful comment and the kudos, you guys are the best ever. I do hope you have enjoyed this chapter as well!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own Sherlock, just messing around while I have the chance.
> 
> Sorry for taking so long, my laptop broke in November, I got it fixed in January, but things were going on, making it hard to do much.

**Chapter Four**

John quickly paid the fare as Sherlock got out of the Taxi. He stood for a moment and waited for John to join him. Sherlock led the way as they walked over to Lestrade who was looking a little worried as they approached him. John gave a small smile to him as Sherlock nodded.

"What took the two of you so long?" he asked them both, wondering what type of problem they had come across that would delay Sherlock Holmes arriving at a crime scene.

"John," Sherlock began as he glanced to his friend and then back to the Detective Inspector, "I had to clean up one of my experiments before we were able to leave. John didn't wish to come back to find it on the table."

Lestrade gave a little chuckle at that, "Well, I think John has a point, no one would want to go home to that after a day of running around."

Sherlock gave a small shrug, "It delayed us."

"Yes, but I didn't want to go home after being out all day only to find that when it comes to making tea I have a horrid smell lingering around," he grinned to Sherlock.

"Right," Lestrade said before the two of them could start to get into an argument, which they would do on occasions, especially when Sherlock had left one of his experiments too long, and it began rot away and attract files to the flat.

"Victim?" Sherlock asked.

Lestrade nodded his head as he began to explain, "Right, the victim is male, Aaron Langley and is 41 years old. Works at one of the Banks in the city centre. He was found by his only daughter sixteen year old Leanne. No mother around," he said as he told them the basics of what he knew. He knew better than to tell Sherlock how the man died.

"Lead the way then," Sherlock prompted giving the man an exasperated look.

Lestrade smiled and rolled his eyes as he led the way into the house. John followed behind them, a roll of his stomach threatened the return of what was in his stomach. He did his best to put the past behind him and lock away the thoughts and the reminders that were barraging his mind. He needed to concentrate on this case, this time. Sherlock gave a small glanced back and can see that John was looking a little ill.

Sherlock saw the body first and headed straight over, he knelt down and began to look around. Lestrade stood near John and could see that something was bothering the other man. John took a breath and then looked around. The room had been messed up, but there wasn't that much that indicated it was a break in gone wrong. The place was messy, but nothing was tipped out like drawers or a cupboard. Pictures were on the floor, but not smashed, as though they had been placed down and not thrown.

"John," Lestrade said softly, "You all right?" he asked, keeping his voice down.

"Yeah, just a bad thought," was his simple answer as he went back to watching Sherlock. He wondered a little why Sherlock hadn't called him to look the body over, unless the man had been able to see what had killed the victim.

Lestrade nodded his head, but didn't believe him fully. He looked over to Sherlock and watched him as well. It was almost ten minutes later when he called out, "So have you found anything?" he wanted to hurry up and close this case he hated these ones since they could drag on longer than any other type of case, leads went cold pretty quick for break ins.

Sherlock stopped what he was doing and stood up and went over to the two of them, "You were right to suspect that it wasn't what it seemed," he said softly as he looked back at the scene for a moment and then back to the two men.

"So…" Lestrade trailed off, trying to prompt Sherlock into expanding on what he had said.

"This wasn't a break in gone wrong, this was murder, a thought out murder," he began as he then started his deduction, "The victim let his killer in the door, a simple excuse to use the phone, or even just a glass of water or something. People forget that not everyone is nice and honest," he snorted and rolled his eyes.

"Sherlock," John said with a slight wince, "just what can you tell us?" he asked him.

Sherlock looked to him and nodded, "The victim was hit over the head as soon as he went into the living room. This was the target area for the killer, he had to be killed here, if it was just to kill him then he would have killed him in the hallway as soon as the front door was closed. That tells me that the killer knew the layout of the house, though blueprints for these houses are easy to find if you know where to look," he paused for a moment, "He was stabbed multiple times, and from what I can see they look hesitant, though I will need to see the body as soon as it gets to the morgue to really tell. There are no defensive wounds, so the blow to the back of the head was enough to stop him from defending himself. Though some of the injuries are not in the right places because all others look uniform apart from some," he finished as he looked to the two of them.

Lestrade wrote down a lot of what Sherlock had said and then asked him, "What can you tell me about the killer?"

"He isn't new to the area, people would have seen him around and dismissed him quite quickly. He looks like he belongs here, a forgettable face. He would have walked through, stalking the family to know who is here and when they are in," he told him as he then added, "He is following a script, he did this with a lot of planning," he stopped for a moment trying to think.

John frowned at that and he asked softly, "Do you think there might be someone else involved in this, someone who planned it for the killer to carry it out?" he looked to Sherlock.

Sherlock thought for a moment, "That could be the case, though why wouldn't the other one be here for it? The living room feels a little staged, the pictures were taken off the walls and placed down. Make sure that I'm told as soon as the body is at the morgue, I wish to look at the injuries better," he finished as he nodded his head to what John had said.

"So there isn't much on the killer that we know, he didn't leave anything behind at all?" Lestrade asked him, hoping for something that he would be able to work on, something that might just lead to someone being arrested and charged.

Sherlock shook his head, "No, he was very careful here, I am going to have a look in the hallway, but I doubt that there will be anything there either, he cleaned up after himself," he said with a sigh as he walked out and looked around a little more.

John and Lestrade was looking around as well, though they couldn't tell if there was anything that Sherlock could use. Sherlock moved around, the forensics unit was there, but thankfully Anderson was away for two weeks on holiday with his wife. Sherlock stopped and went back over to them after a little while.

"So anything that could help us?" Lestrade asked once again as he ran a hand through grey hair.

Sherlock shook his head, "like I said, I didn't believe that there would be anything left. The killer cleaned up after himself. It's why the blood splatter is in one place, there are no blood drips leading away from the victim at all, he would have brought something with him to carry things in. something small," he told them both.

"So, we have nothing that we can work with?" John sighed, just like his dad's murder, this one might go unsolved as well and he hated the thought of someone else never having the closer that was needed to go on with life. To John it was like time stopped, and it was hard for him and Harry to move on from his murder, he knew that the young teen would be feeling the same.

"Not yet, but I still need to look at the body, I might find something on him that could help," Sherlock said, "I would like to examine his clothing more thoroughly as well," he finished nodding to Lestrade.

Lestrade sighed deeply, he could be in so much trouble from this, "Fine Sherlock, find me what you can on this one."

Sherlock nodded his head and gave a small smirk as he then said, "Then I see no more need to be in here, since I can not find anything that will help with this case."

John and Lestrade shared a look but nodded there heads, there was nothing and they knew that. "All right, let's go," Lestrade nodded as he and the other two headed out of the door and into the front garden of the home.

John looked around and sighed, feeling a bit better now that he was back outside and not being reminded constantly of his dad. He didn't noticed that two pairs of eyes looking at him, with curiosity and worry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the wonderful comments and kudos, you guys are awesome. I do hope that you have enjoyed this chapter.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own Sherlock, I am just having a little fun while I can.
> 
> Enjoy!

**Chapter Five**

John looked around a little, taking in the people that were around. Neighbours had come to the tapeline, curious about what was going on. Sherlock walked to where he was and stood beside him, observing those that had gathered. He knew that at times the killer might come back to the scene of the crime and watch what was going on. Lestrade joined them and wondered what was going on.

"I would like to see the daughter, the one who found him," Sherlock said as he looked over to Lestrade.

Lestrade went still at that and shook his head vigorously, "No, Sherlock I know what you are like with people and I can't let you do that to someone else. She has been through enough at the moment."

John looked to Sherlock as he said softly, "If you talk to her, just be really careful, she has just lost her dad, and that hurts more than anything. With no mother around he was the last person she could rely on. I have no doubt she is now feeling alone in the world, so be careful with her," he told him, hoping that he would listen to what he was saying.

Sherlock looked to him and nodded his head, "I will do all I can," he reassure.

Lestrade looked between the two of them and sighed, "All right Sherlock, but one wrong thing and I will drag you away from them. I don't need her making a complaint about you, had enough of those to deal with over the years."

Sherlock just smirked to him as they were led over to a police car where the young teen was sitting half in half out. Sherlock smiled to her as she stood up, looking at them with eyes full of tears, and face pale.

"Hello," she said as she then looked to the Detective Inspector as he came to her, "Have you found anything?" she asked, hoping that they would be able to find out who did this quickly.

"No, but Sherlock here would like to talk to you and ask you a few questions, I hope you don't mind," he said as he smiled to her softly.

The sixteen year old nodded as she looked to the two other men, "What do you want to know?" Her voice was shaky and full of pain.

"Can you tell me how things were like when you first walked in?" Sherlock asked her softly, "I know you most likely don't even want to think about it, but you might have seen something that may be irrelevant to you, but might help me to figure out who has done this," he told her, explaining it instead of just demanding she tell him.

She nodded her head, "All right, well I walked in, the door was unlocked, which it normal was if my dad was home. I always told him he should lock in case someone tried to get in," she told them as she took a breath and wiped her eyes, "I went in and the house just didn't feel right, I walked into the living room, the door was closed, dad never closed doors. I knew something was wrong then, I went in and dad was there, on his stomach. I went over and there was so much blood, so much and I…" she trailed off as her breathing began to change.

Sherlock put his hands on her shoulders as he said, "it's all right, I know it is hard, but I need you to carry on," his voice was gentle and caring as he spoke to her. He could see John out of the corner of his eye and he could see that the man was tense and he wanted to comfort him just as he was doing to the teen in front of him.

She nodded her head as she got herself under control, "Okay," she said softly as he took a breath and carried on, "There was just nothing, and everything was all around the floor as though someone took them off the walls and put them down. It was like a pattern, all around my dad, but with something missing," she said with a frown.

"Well done," Sherlock smiled to her, keeping himself open to what she was saying, "Would there be anyone that would want to harm your dad?" he then asked.

She shook her head, "No, dad was loved by everyone, he was always helping people out when they needed it. Mum always said that's why she fell for him, he helped her dad when he was a teen and mum fell hard," she gave a small smile as she thought of her mother, "He couldn't hurt anyone either, he just wanted to help everyone, always volunteered for things as well, especially at the hospital where mum died."

Sherlock nodded his head, "Sounds like a good man," he told her.

"The best, and the best dad as well," she smiled to him.

"Could you tell if there was anything missing from your home at all?" Sherlock then asked her softly.

Leanne sighed as she closed her eyes and tried to think, "I don't know," she shook her head and gave a heavy sigh, "I can't tell, I don't I just…" she said as he voice began to shake.

"All right, don't you worry, though if you remember anything tell Lestrade and he'll get it to me," he told her.

Sherlock and John then walked from her as Lestrade got her to sit in the car. The man then joined them as Sherlock was looking around. Lestrade had been a little shocked with how Sherlock had been with the teen.

"I am going to look around outside, there might be something that has been missed," Sherlock said as he then left the two of them standing and began to look around.

John gave a small smile and looked around, "There he goes again," as he watched the man.

Lestrade looked to him, "Is everything all right, you've not been yourself since I came and told you about this one?" he asked him, worried about him.

John looked to him and tried to give him a reassuring smile, "Yeah, I'm all right. Nothing much bothering me," he said.

Lestrade looked to him and shook his head, "John, you aren't acting like your normal self," he told him.

John gave a small sigh as his smile dropped, "Greg, really I'm all right, just not been a good day for me before all this all right," he told him, giving him a partial honest answer. Since he didn't want to just come out and tell them that it was coming up to the anniversary of his father murder. It just wasn't something that would come up in a normal conversation.

The two went silent as they watched Sherlock looked around for a while longer and then walked back over to them, "I haven't seen anything or come across anything that might be able to help us in finding out who the killer is," he told them as he stopped as he came to them.

Lestrade gave an aggravated sigh as he said, "Thanks for coming Sherlock. I'll let you know as soon as you can go and see the body, and I'll tell you as soon as we have heard from Miss Langley about anything missing from the house," he finished.

Sherlock nodded his head, "Good, I shall be going back home. I have nothing I need to check at the moment."

John smiled to him and then over to Lestrade, "I'll see you soon Greg, all right."

Lestrade looked to the man and nodded his head, "All right then, take care of yourselves," he said as he gave a pointed look to John. He knew that there was something more going on that what the other had said and he knew he wouldn't be getting it out of the man any time soon. He just hoped Sherlock knew that something was going on and would keep an eye on him and help him if need.

"Good bye Lestrade." Sherlock said as he left the scene and went a little further away, John walking beside him.

The taller of the two called for a taxi and soon one pulled up. The two got in and they headed back to Baker Street. Sherlock watching John out of the corner of his eye for the whole journey. He was puzzled and slightly worried about him, he had hoped he would be able to get John to talk to him after they got home. But from what he could see, Sherlock would have a hard time in doing so.

John just looked out of the window, wondering when Harry would make her yearly call. He had been happy when he was in the army since Harry found it difficult to call him and rant. He gave a sigh, he just wanted to go home and have a cup of tea and maybe try and forget what day it was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the wonderful kudos and comments, I love you guys. I do hope that you have enjoyed this chapter.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own Sherlock, just having a little fun.
> 
> Thanks go to Madyamisam for the editing, any left are mine.

**Chapter Six**

John walked around the table, happy that when he had got up that it was clean. Sherlock had cleaned up after himself without John having to moan at him about it. He gave a small smile as the toaster popped up. He went over to it and grabbed the toast, wincing a little at the heat as he put it down and grabbed the butter and jam. The kettle boiled just as he finished doing so, pouring the tea into his cup. John couldn't help but grin at himself. He had gotten the timing down perfectly now. He knew when to put the toast down and to flick the switch on the kettle to make sure that both would be hot for him to eat and drink.

John sat down as he heard the door to the bathroom open. He heard the steps of shoe clad feet head towards him. Smiling, he watched Sherlock walk in dressed for once. Sherlock came in and sat down at the table as John pushed a mug towards him and a plate of buttered toast. Sherlock looked down at it and raised a challenging eyebrow. John scowled and Sherlock sighed, getting the message.

"Fine," he grumbled as he picked up the toast and took a bite, it was just how he liked it.

"Right," John announced as he finished the last of his toast, and gulped down his tea.

"Where are you going?" Sherlock asked him, narrowing his eyes.

"Work," John said with roll of his eyes.

"Work?" he puzzled as he looked at him.

John couldn't help the annoyed chuckle, "Typical, you've deleted it again. I told you what my schedule at the clinic was like. I have to work this shift and tomorrow's shift, they are short staffed until Tina comes back from the conference the day after," he told him again.

Sherlock thought for a moment, "I remember something, but yes, you're right. I must have deleted it again. Sorry John," he apologised.

John did a double take at the words. It wasn't often that he would hear 'you're right' or 'sorry' coming from Sherlock without being prompted let alone in the same sentence., "Alright... Well," he said with a smile, "Just keep out of trouble and if you really need me, just text or call and if you are just texting me, try not to bug me too much. Mrs Jones wasn't too happy when I saw your text and burst out laughing as she was leaving the room," he said with a smirk.

Sherlock smirked back, "I was only telling you the truth John," though the 'accident' may not have been an accident after all, since he knew that it would last until John came home to see.

John laughed as the image of Sherlock with hair sticking out in all directions, an eyebrow slightly singed and a stain of blue covering half his face, which had lasted another nine hours, "I'll see you later Sherlock," he said as he shook his head, smiling as he left the flat.

Sherlock couldn't help the smile as he got up and went to the window to watch John walk down the street. He could see when he came in that John was still down about something, though it wasn't as evident as the day before. If mentioning something that had embarrassed him would make John smile, then he would do so. Sherlock would often do something, or mention something, that would cause John to smile or even laugh after a bad day.

Sherlock then looked around the flat, there was nothing he could do at the moment. His experiment needed a little time before he could do more and record the results. He had hoped that he would of been able to head to the morgue that day, though it looked like Molly hadn't been able to do the autopsy yet. He flopped down on the sofa and went into his mind palace. It was almost an hour later when his phone began to ring. He looked at it and smirked. It was a text from Molly.

**I'm heading to the morgue. If I am not finished, you can join me there after your shift- SH - 11:08am**

He sent it out and he grabbed his coat and headed out of the flat, announcing his departure to Mrs Hudson as she was washing her door. She smiled and waved goodbye to him. He got a taxi and headed to the morgue as his phone vibrate and rang in his pocket. He pulled it out and smiled as he saw it was a text from John.

**Good to hear that you won't be turning yourself blue again, though next time I'll be taking pictures! Say hello to Molly for me, I should be done here by around 4pm I don't think you'll still be there by then, so see you back at Baker Street - JW - 11:14am**

**All right John, I shall see you back at Baker Street after your shift - SH - 11:15am**

**Okay, and behave Sherlock, I know what you're like - JW - 11:15am**

Sherlock smiled as the taxi slowed down and came to a stop. He paid for the fare and then headed inside St Bart and towards the morgue. He opened the door to the small office that Molly had and looked at the young woman that was at her desk writing a few things down on a chart.

She looked up as soon as she finished writing what she needed, "Oh, hello Sherlock," she smiled at him as she stood up.

"Molly," he greeted with a nod of her head, "The body?" he asked as he wanted to get this case over and done with, especially with the way it was effecting John.

Molly nodded her head and walked around her desk, picking up a file as she did, "Here's a copy of the autopsy report for you," she smiled at him as she led the way to the morgue. She went over to one of the three tables that had bodies on them and pulled the cover down.

Sherlock nodded, grabbed some gloves as he passed the box and began to examine the victim. He looked at everything he could, hoping that he would be able to find something that could locate the killer, or point them in the right direction at least. But there was nothing. He felt his phone vibrate and ring in his pocket, he ignored it as he finished with his examination. He took off the gloves and then read through the text. Nodding to himself, he turned to Molly.

"Thank you," he said, knowing that John would find out if he hadn't at least went through the motions of 'showing appreciation' he then added, "and John said to say Hello for him."

Molly smiled, "Tell him hello back," she called with a shake of her head as she watched him rush out of the morgue while tapping away on his phone.

Sherlock heard the call and absently nodded as he texted to John.

**Lestrade has just texted. Family photo is missing. Photo was taken before mother passed away. - SH - 12:32pm**

He called for a cab and then headed back to Baker Street. He was in the cab for a bit before his phone rang out that he had another text message. He saw that it was from John and read it, thinking it had taken a while to get to him.

**I hope that she has more pictures like it. It's not nice to lose something like that. - JW - 12:41pm**

**I believe she does. I am on my way back to Baker Street now. - SH - 12:42pm**

Sherlock frowned as he read through John's last message again. It sounded subdued as though he knew what it was like. Sherlock wanted to ask him, but he knew that John wasn't ready to tell him anything. It wasn't long before the cab pulled up at Baker Street and he got out. He sat at the desk for a couple of minutes as his phone beeped to him.

**You can tell me what you found when I get home. Make sure to have lunch. - JW - 12:57pm**

Sherlock looked at it and didn't answer as his mind began to go through all that it had learned about the case so far. He wanted to solve it, not for Leanne or Lestrade but for John, who was so disturbed by it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the brilliant comments and kudos, so happy that you guys are enjoying it. Hope you like this chapter as well!


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own Sherlock, just having a little fun while I can.
> 
> Thanks go to Madyamisam for the editing, all remaining mistakes are my own.
> 
> Sorry for not updating yesterday, I had a bad fall. I’m okay, just feeling really bruised and a sprained ankle.

**Chapter Seven**

John walked to the front door and opened it. He'd had an alright day at work, nothing but the usual people coming for their complaints. Nothing that would bother him too much. John walked up the stairs and into the living room of 221b, pulling off his coat as he went. He hung it up and looked around the flat. It wasn't messy for once, he knew that sometimes when Sherlock was left alone with nothing to do he would come back and the place would almost be destroyed.

"Hello John," Sherlock called out from where he was sat at the table, working on one of his experiments.

"Hey Sherlock," he smiled as he walked into the kitchen. He gave a shake of his head at the smell that was in the room. He knew that by the time dinner came it would be all over the flat. He just hoped it would be all right to open a window in a minute, "So..." he began as he looked at him before turning to fill up the kettle and switching it on, "what did you find out about the victim?" he asked.

Sherlock looked up from his experiment and answered him, "Well, the victim struggled so there were a lot of defensive wounds. Parts of where the killer wanted to specifically cut were missed, so wounds in other places. The specific injuries were all done to the same depth and were all the same length, so the knife was the same throughout," he began as he recorded something down and then carried on, "Not only that but they were hesitant, especially the first ones I would say. The later ones were done a little quicker, but still not as quick as they would be if the killer was confident in himself and what he was doing," he finished.

John nodded his head slowly, "So we might just be looking for a team then, one that plans and the other that carries them out?"

Sherlock looked back to him, "You could be right on that one John, but we can not rule out the possibility that he is doing this alone and is hesitant because it is his first human kill."

"First human kill?" he queried wondering what the hell that meant.

"I believe that he has killed animals before. Most killers would begin with something like that," he explained with a little shrug, he knew what he believed.

John gave a little sigh and then nodded, "Alright then," he said softly.

"The victim was stabbed eleven times in total, not including the ones that were obviously mistakes, with them it's fifteen times," he told him.

John turned away from him at that, his shoulders were tense again. He clenched his jaw a little as well. It was too much like his dad's. He nodded his head as he made tea for the two of them. To take his mind of the similarities he began to think what he could do for dinner. He handed Sherlock his tea and then turned to raid the cupboards and fridge to see what was on offer.

Sherlock watched him, shook his head and gave a tiny sigh. Something was really bothering John and he couldn't help but be curious when he saw the doctor head to the fridge, "What is it John?What is it about this case that has you so…" he trailed off as he tried to figure out what word to use, "… So upset."

John froze, looking into the fridge. He didn't know how to answer the question, while a part of him wanted to tell him what was going just didn't want to talk about it at that moment in time, "There is something but I really don't want to talk about it at the moment all right and please don't ask your brother to get involved to find out for you either. Just… just leave this one please," he almost pleaded as he turned to him and almost jumped when he saw that Sherlock was now standing right behind him.

Sherlock nodded his head as he wrapped his arms around John and pulled him close, "I will not pry using Mycroft, but I know that something has you upset and I do not like it."

John was stiff at first, he never expected Sherlock to do such a thing. He started to relax and enjoy the comfort that Sherlock was offering him. "Thank you," he said, though he didn't know what he was thanking the other for. Was it just for the hug or was it for promising that he wouldn't pry into his past?

Sherlock nodded and then let him go and went back to the table, "Tell me when you can, all right John?" he told him softly, even though he wanted nothing more than to know. He knew that breaking his promise would upset John even more and that he wanted to avoid that.

John was thankful that the other would let it drop. He began to take things out of the fridge and cupboards and started to prepare dinner for the two of them.

"Do I really have to eat again John. I already ate yesterday," Sherlock complained as he saw that John was going to be doing enough for the two of them.

John rolled his eyes and turned to him for a second and told him, "Yes you do, Sherlock you are so skinny that one day I know that the wind is going to pick up and take you away from me."

Sherlock heard the words and smiled a little, "Yes, but I know you will follow me and find me and make sure I haven't got stuck up a tree at all," he joked, hoping that John would smile a little.

John couldn't help the little bubble of laughter coming out, "Sherlock," he smiled with a shake of his head, "You're still going to eat though," he added softly.

"And if I don't?" Sherlock said, a little smirk beginning to form on his face.

John turned to him, the knife in his hand as he said, pointing it to Sherlock, "I will force feed you if necessary. I know how to tie you up and make sure that you know you won't be able to get out of them. Remember last time," he smirked as he turned back to the counter and carried on chopping the vegetables up. He was once again grateful that Mrs Hudson had done some shopping for the two of them.

"Hmm," Sherlock just hummed. He still had to get him back for tying him up. Mycroft had wanted to talk to him and John had helped make sure Sherlock couldn't run off.

"Good of you to remember," John grinned as he carried on preparing their meal.

"Yes, but did you have to leave me at the mercy of Mycroft, he was horrible that day, he complained about everything and told me things I really didn't want to know," he huffed a little.

"Yes, well I had to get you to listen to him, because I didn't," he grinned a little.

Sherlock chuckled, "I will get you back for that, you know?" he told him.

"You can try Sherlock Holmes and you know I will retaliate. Maybe you'll be the one to find a couple of fingers and thumbs in your bed for once. Or maybe I'll get rid of your experiments," he mock threatening him.

"You would do no such thing," Sherlock chuckled as he shook his head.

"I'll do something though," John retorted him.

Sherlock smiled, he was happy that he could see that the tension that John had when they had talked about the case was now gone. He enjoyed that fact that he had been able to make John laugh a little. He knew that things were not going well at the moment, with the case and something else that was bothering his friend. He hated to see him like this. It had happened before, this melancholy and upset. He did remember that Harry had called around that time and John had been even more upset that he had been before that.

John smiled as he carried on with preparing dinner. He had been surprised by the hug and he had welcomed it. It gave him some comfort that he really needed at the time. John smiled, he knew that Sherlock cared for him, but now he really had proof of hug meant more than Sherlock could even guess.

The two talked as John made dinner and the smells began to permeate the room and the smell of the experiment began to leave the flat as Sherlock put it away and opened a window for them. The two of them soon sat down at the table eating. Though John had threatened to feed Sherlock if he didn't actually start eating at all. He had complained and the two had laughed over what was said more and more. Happy smiles on their faces, especially for John who could, for a moment forget his past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the awesome kudos and comments, you guys are the best. I’m really happy that you have enjoyed the story so far. I hope you have enjoyed this chapter as well!


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don’t own Sherlock, just having a little fun while I can.
> 
> Thanks go to Madyamisam for the editing, all remaining mistakes are my own.
> 
> Sorry for not updating yesterday, family were down for most of the day.

**Chapter Eight**

Sherlock sighed a little as he flopped down on the sofa still in his pyjamas and blue silk robe. He couldn’t be bothered to get dressed today. It had been two weeks since Aaron Langley had been murdered in his home. Sherlock hadn’t been able to find anything that would lead him to the killer, there was just nothing there. Nothing at all.

John looked over at his flatmate and sighed, shaking his head, “You should go and get dressed Sherlock,” he chided though his voice was a little subdued.

Sherlock winced when he heard John’s voice, he could hear the pain in it and still he didn’t know what was the cause of it. Though he noticed that it had gotten worse the moment that Harriett Watson had called and talked to her brother. John hadn’t spoken a single word the rest of the day. Sherlock had been tempted to go and find her to figure out what was going on, but he had promised John he wouldn’t pursue the matter.

“I’m bored John,” he said, as he flopped onto his back and then glanced over, “I feel like I should just curl up in a ball and roll around like a loony, it might be more entertaining,” he watched John out of the corner of his eye as he went back to staring at the ceiling.

John cracked a small smile as he shook his head, “Well you could always help Lestrade with a few of his cold cases and then there is the one that Mycroft would like you to do for him,” he advised.

“Ugh, Lestrade’s cold cases are too easy, I’ve already done a lot of them,” Sherlock moaned and then added, “as for Mycroft, no, he already owes me three favours from the ones I have done for him recently, he is just going to keep doing this until I find something that he will have no choice but to pay me back for,” As soon as he had finished complaining, Sherlock then wondered what he could get Mycroft to do for them.

John smiled a little and then said, “Well, then I don't know, clean up the kitchen, make sure it’s spotless,” he shrugged, just throwing something out there.

Sherlock snorted at the suggestion, “Very funny John, you know I hate cleaning.”

John chuckled at the look of utter disgust on his face, “I know you do, which is why I tend to make sure that you clean up after yourself when you have done experiments in the kitchen. I don’t want to have to come home have something to eat and then become ill because you contaminated something and forgot to tell me,” he said with a pointed look as Sherlock was now looking at him.

Sherlock frowned, “I don’t remember that, I would have remembered you becoming ill because of something I’ve done.”

“I have been ill once because of your experiments, the mould one, ended up with a chest infection, took me an age to get rid of it as well. Not to mention the times when you have decided it would be alright to drug me with something,” he listed the incidents with a roll of his eyes.

“Ah yes, the one where you were so happy you sang instead of spoke,” Sherlock chuckled as he remembered.

John couldn’t help but laugh as well. While he had been embarrassed when it had happened at the time it was pretty funny, in hindsight. He recalled the confused faces of his friends and a few patients before he had been sent home, “You know,” John said as the smile lingered on his face, “Sarah and some of the people in the waiting room all complimented my voice that day.”

Sherlock laughed as well and shook his head, “I shall have to do it again then if they liked it,” he retorted with a little glint in his eye.

John laughed and shook his head, “No you don't, I like not singing all the time, it hurt my throat at the end of it.”

“Hmm,” Sherlock nodded his head, “Very well, but if you do, I remember the combination that did it,” he told him.

John was about to say something when Sherlock’s phone began to vibrate on the table in the kitchen. “I am not getting it Sherlock.” he groused when he the look on the consulting detective’s face.

“John, get my phone,” he whined with a pout on his face.

John shook his head, but soon he found himself getting up and going into the kitchen, “it’s from Lestrade, missed call,” he told him as he then threw the phone to the man who caught it easily.

Sherlock nodded and was about to send a text when it rang again, he answered it and nodded a few times before saying, “We will be there soon Lestrade,” he told him and then hung up.

“What is it?”

“There has been another break in murder,” he answered.

John winced as soon as he heard, “Damn,” he said with a shake of his head and the feelings that had been leaving him after Harry’s call we're back.

Sherlock stood up and went towards his bedroom, “I am going to get dressed and you were right John, I should have done it earlier,” he said as he went in and got dressed.

John flopped down on the chair and put his head in his hands, he had seen the look in Sherlock’s eyes, he knew that something about the case itself was getting  to John. He would have to tell him, he knew that a lot of the things that Sherlock had said lately were all his way of trying to cheer him up. This year was just a lot worse than the others and he knew it was because he felt as though there was no more time left to be able to find his father's killer. John would have to tell him, maybe later on when they got back or tomorrow, he wasn't at work then, so he should be able to.

“Are you sure you are up to doing this John?” Sherlock asked him as he walked back in and saw the way that John was sitting.

John was a little startled and looked up, “What? Oh, I’ll be fine to come with you so don’t worry about that,” he answered quickly as he stood up.

Sherlock didn’t look convinced., “Honestly John, I know there is something about this case that is bothering you and I know that it had caused you to make sure I take this case as well. I had thought that this might also be a one off as well, as most usually are,” he gave a little sigh.

John shook his head, “Not all of them are though,” he told him as he went and grabbed his coat. Sherlock doing the same.

Sherlock looked at him coming to a realisation, “You know more about this that you let on?”

John didn’t say anything for a moment, trying to come up with something that would tell Sherlock to drop it all for now.

“John, what is it?” he asked his voice almost pleading with him to tell him what was going on. Sherlock refrained from just deducing what was wrong, he doing his best to be considerate to John’s feelings.

John gave a sigh as he turned to him and said, “When we have the time I will tell you alright? I will. I don’t really want to, but I think you should know and maybe when you have solved this case maybe you might help with this one as well,” he told him, hoping that the other would do such a thing for him.

Sherlock looked at him and nodded his head, “I will, whatever you need help in I will do so, you know that.”

John gave a tiny smile and nodded, “Alright then, shall we get going, Lestrade may think you’ve gotten lost.,” he joked a little, trying to lighten his own mood.

“More like, you would have gotten us lost,” Sherlock countered with a smile.

John’s smile got a little bigger and the two of them left the flat. Sherlock soon had a taxi hailed and they were getting in. He gave the address and they sat back. John looked out of the window, not noticing that Sherlock was watching him. The younger of the two of them was trying to figure out what it could be that John would want his help on. He knew that it might be something similar to what was going on now. Was his father murdered or something and that was why he was having trouble, because he knew what Leanne Langley was going through at having her father murdered and finding the body. Sherlock gave a sigh as he looked out the window and watched as the streets passed him by. It wouldn't be long before they would get there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the awesome kudos and comments, you guys are the best. I’m really happy that you have enjoyed the story so far. I hope you have enjoyed this chapter as well!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own Sherlock, I'm just having a little bit of fun.
> 
> Thanks go to Madyamisam for the editing. Any mistakes that remain are mine.

**Chapter Nine**

Sherlock stepped out of the taxi and walked towards Lestrade, who was waiting for them at the police line. John shook his head and paid the fare. Some days he thought of just opening an account with one of the taxi firms, it might be easier in the long run. He gave a shake of his head at the thought and then followed Sherlock over to him and smiled at Lestrade.

"Good to see the two of you," he greeted, his face was grim and stressed. The previous break in murder had hit the headlines and was hurting the department hard by not having it solved yet. Now there was a second one that they were going to have the same trouble with.

"Hey Greg," John greeted him.

"So what do we have?" Sherlock asked as he ducked under the tape, lifting up for John who then did the same.

"Philip Allmond, thirty nine, was found by his son David when he came home from football practice. David's is the youngest of two siblings, other son is Andrew and he lives in Birmingham. He is on his way to pick up his brother," he winced as he looked over to where David was sat, looking pale, drawn and in shock as a paramedic was with him.

"Anything else?" John asked him.

"Stabbed just like the previous victim," he finished.

"Right," Sherlock confirmed as they walked into the house. It was in a nice area and the neighbours had come out to see what had happened. One of them decided to sit with David.

"How old is the kid?" John asked Lestrade sympathy and understanding in his eyes as he followed the others into the house.

"Fifteen," Lestrade sighed, "I hate this, all he's got left now is his brother, the mother died when he was young, he doesn't even remember her properly," he growled in frustration.

John nodded his head as he gave a wince, "Yeah, it's hard, it will be hard for him, even with an older sibling," he mumbled.

This caused the two men to stop and look at him, "This is part of what you want to tell me?" Sherlock asked the former army doctor.

John looked at him and nodded his head, "Yeah, later though, let's do this first, we need to help these two get the closure they need."

They nodded their heads and then walked through the house to the living room. John walked in and he felt as though he was back in the past. The place was just like in his dreams, even though it was a different house and a different man lying on the floor. The placement of the pictures and the way he was lying was just like then. This wasn't normal, this wasn't right and he had a feeling that he would be telling Lestrade about his father's case as well.

Sherlock looked at John and saw the pain in his eyes, he went over to him and reassured him, "It's alright, you are fine," he didn't know if it was the best thing he could say to him, but it would have to do for now.

John shook his head and refocused back onto the present, "I'm fine, do what you need to."

Sherlock nodded and then went around the room, observing what he could and making his deductions. Lestrade stayed close to John, just in case the man wanted to get out or something. It took a little while before Sherlock walked back over to them, a concentrated frown on his face as he was making sense of everything he had been able to find.

"What have you got?" Lestrade asked him.

"This one let him in as well, led him in here. It was someone he knew. As soon as the man turned his back the trophy over there was used to hit him over the head. It has been cleaned though, so no prints or anything on that, even the blood was cleaned up mostly, there is a little bit on the bottom still," he began to explain what he had been able to deduce, "he was stabbed, this time though the victim didn't put up no resistance, he had hit this one a lot harder and knocked him out instead of dazing him. The pictures were once again broken and placed around the victim. It's all for effect, what was interesting though was the marks over the in the far corner, there are very faint tripod marks, he filmed this."

John looked at him, "Filmed?" his eyes widened in horror..

Sherlock nodded, "Yes, filmed, I believe that he did it to show that it was done to the plan in order for the mastermind, the original instigator to see that no mistakes were made. Not only that but compost that was found on the pavement does not match with anything that could be used in the garden here, I will go to the lab later to check it out," he explained as he finished.

"Right," Lestrade sighed heavily, "So still nothing at the moment," he groaned

"No," he shook his head, "he is not as hesitant as he was the last time. He did it quickly, I believe that he has built up the confidence the second time since he has not been caught in the first. Not only that but I believe that he is listening to someone, most likely by phone. With the crime also being recorded, I think we might see either another male or a female attending the next murder. I am not ruling anything out at the moment on this, so it could be within his mind," Sherlock explained as he looked at the two of them, he could see that John was still a little pale.

"So nothing that can help. He cleaned up after himself," John questioned as he looked around a little.

"Correct," he sighed, he hated not being able to find anything that could help.

"I will be needing to go to the morgue later, though I doubt I will find anything. The compost should be easy enough to identify though," he concluded.

"Let's get out of here," John replied in a hurry, he was feeling rather closed in, especially when all he saw was the past and not the present. If he didn't leave right now, he was going to go into a full out panic attack.

Sherlock looked at him and then nodded his head, "Yes, I believe it might be a good idea," he admitted as he and the others walked out and let the forensics unit carry on with their work.

John sighed when he was outside, he already felt better. He turned to Sherlock and Lestrade and smiled a little, "Right, so what are we going to be doing later?" he asked.

"Home, I want to talk even though I know that you really don't want to," Sherlock paused for John's reaction, as he looked at him.

John nodded, his reluctance clear on his face but underneath, "I think I might need to talk to you as well Greg," he added as he looked at Lestrade.

"What about?" Lestrade asked, a little curious as to what was going on. It was obvious that Sherlock had some idea as to what might be talked about.

"Just something that I think might help, though I don't know if it will in the end," he answered with a shake of his head, maybe he was just reading too much into this, but it was just too similar not to be related in a way.

Lestrade nodded his head, "Alright then, when you need to talk, just give me a bell and I'll come over then."

"Alright," John nodded.

Lestrade was looking between the two of them, "Any hint?" he asked them, he couldn't help but be curious.

John smiled at him a little as he confessed, "It has something to do with my dad," admitted, hoping he would drop it for now.

"Alright then," Lestrade backed off.

Sherlock then suggested, "I think I would like to talk with younger son though I believe John, it might be better if you did it," he decided as he looked at John.

John nodded his head, "Yeah, I suppose, but you know what needs to be asked."

"As do you," Sherlock countered.

John gave a little sigh, he wasn't sure that he was up to speaking to another teenager that had gone through the same thing as he had. It was going to be hard and he could tell that Sherlock knew it. He could see the doubt about asking him to talk to him. He straightened himself up a little and sighed. He would do it, he could see that the teen was in shock as he had been when he had found his dad, he would be able to help. He had to, he needed to do this and then he would have to tell them what happened. So much to do and so much to sort out in his head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the kudos and the comments, you guys are the best. I'm so happy that you are enjoying this fic, I do hope you will enjoy this chapter as well.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own Sherlock or Harry Potter, just having a little fun while I can.
> 
> Sorry for being away for so long. Near the beginning of last year, I had a health scare and didn't get the all clear until the beginning of November. Taken the last two months to get back into the swing of things. So hope you enjoy this chapter.
> 
> Thanks to Madyamisam who went through this chapter, any remaining mistakes are my own.

Chapter Ten

John looked at the kid as Sherlock walked them over. Lestrade hadn't even had time to protest him going over there to talk to David. Sherlock stopped before him and the teen looked up, tears tracks streaked his face and John felt a twinge of sympathy and understanding in his heart. He knew what he was going through.

"Hello David," Sherlock greeted, his voice was gentle, exactly the way it was when he was talking with Leanne two weeks ago.

"Who are you?" he asked, as his voice trembled.

"My name is Sherlock Holmes and I help the police solve crimes. I have been asked to come and help on this one as well," he answered, "I am sorry for your loss."

David nodded his head, "I only have Andy left now, what am I gonna do?" he whimpered as he tried to keep his tears from fall.

Sherlock crouched down to the boy's level and offered him a handkerchief "You can start by working with me and the police in catching your father's killer. The rest you'll have to figure out yourself." Sherlock replied. David shyly took the handkerchief and wiped his eyes.

David nodded, "Yeah, I want to know who did this to my Dad," he sniffed his gaze hardening with determination.

Sherlock nodded in understanding, "When you were inside, did you notice if there was anything missing from the house at all, anything at all out of place and odd?" he asked him.

David frowned as he tried to think. He began to shake his head and then looked up, "Yeah, there was a pic taken before mum died, it always hung up in the center of all our pictures. It was the last one of mum and us all together. I didn't see it…" he swallowed hard and shook, "I didn't see it with the others that were on the floor," he finally got out.

Sherlock nodded his head, "Thank you for answering that, you have a good memory," he praised him, a smile on his face.

"Da… Da always said that too," he replied with a small smile.

"Bye David and take care," Sherlock said as he turned away and walked off.

"It will never fully go away, but it will get better and Sherlock is really good at what he does, I know he will figure this out," John answered.

David looked at him and nodded. John smiled and then turned to walk over to Sherlock who was on his phone. He walked over and waited for the man to notice that he was there again. Sherlock put away the phone and looked down to him as Lestrade went over to David.

"Shall we go home?" the taller asked John.

John shook his head, "No, what is more important is for you to go to the lab and have a test with that sample you have. I know you want to know what is up with me. This case is more important than that," he urged.

Sherlock looked at him and then nodded his head, "Very well, we shall go to the lab for while, but will you tell me tonight?"

"I will when this is done," he nodded in agreement.

The two said goodbye to Lestrade, well, John did. They got in a taxi and headed to Bart's. It didn't take long for them to be in a lab. Sherlock working and John just watching. The door opened and John smiled as Mike walked in.

"Hey Mike," he smiled at the man as he walked over to him.

"Good to see you again John," Mike smiled back, "You look rough, how are you?" he asked, he knew about John's dad and what had happened to him.

"Been hard, have a new case that reminds me so much of what happened to dad," he said softly, "It's just so similar to what I know of dads case as well, that maybe they are connected."

Mike looked at him, "I don't know if that would be the case John, don't forget that your dad was murdered twenty years ago and around two hundred miles away from London. What would be the odds of it happening again and where you live?" he asked him, getting him to think about it all.

John snorted as he thought about it, "Maybe you are right and I am making connections when there are none, I just want to find out who killed my dad Mike, it's been so long that I know that it most likely won't happen, but I can hope."

"I know that John, I remember what it was like when it was the anniversary, which I know had just gone," he said, "So it will be on your mind even more than usual. You could be thinking of what you saw and pulling the similarities from the case you are working, to your dad's in the hope that you might be able to solve it," he finished.

John gave a dry chuckle, "I suppose.I was going to tell Greg about it, but I think I'll give him a call and tell him that I'll tell him another day," he replied.

Mike nodded at him as he went over to his desk and began to do some marking before he had to make lesson plans. John watched Sherlock for a moment before he pulled out his phone and called Greg.

"Lestrade," came the voice on the other end.

"It's John, don't worry about stopping by, I'll tell you what is going on another time all right,"

"If you are sure John, I don't mind coming over so you only have to go through it once," Greg replied sounding concerned.

John smiled, "I know, but maybe over a pint, it's going to be hard enough telling Sherlock, you know what he is like for interrupting and asking questions."

"Yeah," Lestrade chuckled, "All right then John, we'll go for a pint soon and you can tell me then," he finished.

"Thanks, bye Greg," Lestrade said his own good bye and they hung up.

Sherlock took longer to finish his work but he soon stood up and walked over to John. He gave a sigh of disappointment.

"What is it?" John asked him.

"The compost is just general all purpose compost," he said with a sigh, "there is nothing about it that might help me find out where it came from. Nearly all garden centers sell it as well as a number of other stores."

John sighed, "Sorry, Sherlock wish I could help on that one," he added, "I know that he will make a mistake, they always do and I know I would rather they not kill again, I know it's going to happen."

"Yes, we do have a serial killer on our hands, this one is particular baffling as I can find no reason for doing this," he looked at John.

John gave him a small smile, "I bet in the end there might just be loads of reasons and we can't see them at the moment because we are not thinking about everything, or we don't know everything yet," he explained.

Sherlock thought for a moment, "Hmmm," he hummed, "you may be right about that."

John chuckled, "Maybe, would be nice to be right."

Sherlock smiled at him, "You are a lot of the time John, you help me come to the right path when you ask questions, you ask the right one," he replied as he then added, "I believe we are to go home now, would you like to grab something to eat on the way home, we didn't have dinner yet."

John tensed, but forced himself to relax, "Yeah, getting something to eat might be a good idea, I am hungry, don't know if I will eat much though, this is going to be hard," he admitted.

"I know, we can always warm it up later," he reasoned.

John smiled as they walked out of the lab, waving bye to Mike as they passed him. They were soon in a taxi and heading towards their local Chinese, Sherlock had ordered on the phone and said they would pick it up. It didn't take them long to head back to Baker Street. John was dreading talking to Sherlock, he knew that it was going to be hard. He hadn't really told anyone what had happened to his dad since he was at University with Mike and that had been a very long time ago for him. He gave a sigh as the taxi pulled up outside Baker Street and they got out. Sherlock paid the fare this time as he handed John their dinner. He gave the older man a smile as he opened the door. He could see that John was tense and resigned to their talk. Sherlock was tempted to let him go and not say anything, but curiosity had won out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the wonderful comments and Kudos, I do hope you have enjoyed this chapter as well.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own Sherlock, I am just having a little fun while I can.
> 
> Thanks to Madyamisam for going through this chapter, any remaining mistakes are my own.

Chapter Eleven

Sherlock went to the kitchen and began to dish out the food that they had brought. John had already gone into the living room. Sherlock could see that he was out of sorts and he knew that it was because of their upcoming conversation. Sherlock sighed as he finished and brought the two trays into the living room.

"Here," he whispered to John as he handed over the tray.

"Thanks," John smiled appreciatively as he took it and placed it on his lap, but did nothing but stare at it afterward. Eventually, he reluctantly picked up his fork and took a bite. As expected, it didn't sit well in his stomach as he swallowed. He felt very unsettled. John knew he would need to talk to Sherlock, but he didn't even have a clue as to how to start the conversation.

Sherlock watched him as he just pushed the food around on his plate, occasionally taking a tortuous bite "If you want we can always eat after we have had our conversation," he suggested.

John looked at him and then nodded as he settled his tray on the coffee table and sighed, "sorry, just don't think I want to talk if I have to eat, it just doesn't sit right."

Sherlock nodded his head and set his own aside, "We can always warm it up later," he smiled.

John gave a dry chuckle and nodded, "yes," he sighed gratefully.

"So, are you going to tell me what is going on?" he asked.

John nodded, "My mum died of cancer when I was around ten. As soon as Harry was old enough she moved out, leaving me and my dad alone. She hated being with just us two. She didn't hate us, she just wanted freedom and not to think of the place where mum died. Dad and I had trouble with that, but we got used to being there, it made us feel closer to her," he answered with a shrug.

"I'm sorry for you loss," Sherlock replied softly.

John smiled to him, "It was a long time ago and we were expecting it so she was at home when she passed away, all of us were with her. So it was calm and peaceful," he told him as he took a breath, "my dad and I were alone for a good six years," he paused, not knowing how to start.

"John," his voice deepening, calling for the doctor's attention, "Why don't you start at the beginning," he told him.

John nodded, "I suppose that would be the best place," he shuddered as he took a breath and gave a sigh, "I was sixteen and coming back from school. Had rugby practice, but dad always came with me, so I would go home and we would walk together since it was on the way," he told him, "I got home and unlocked the door, something didn't feel right. It was so quiet, dad was the type to be quiet, even when mum was ill, he would always have the TV on or the radio, singing along to something. It was his day off from work, he arranged it so that he would be there to go to rugby with me, most of the time he worked until at least six o'clock," he told him.

"Always noisy," Sherlock said with a shake of his head.

"Yeah, always, there was something always going on, my dad wasn't the type to sit down and do nothing," he told him nodding his head slowly, "I walked into the living room and there was blood everywhere, pictures were all off the walls and the place was totally trashed. It scared me, I knew it was wrong I knew something was wrong but I went in and I saw him, he was lying there on his back, staring up at the ceiling. He was gone, I could tell that straight away," he told him, shaking his head as all he could see was the dead look in his father's eyes.

"You found him," Sherlock whispered.

John nodded, "yeah, I did. I found him and Harry couldn't be found for two days, had to stay at a foster home for a while. Then with her and she wasn't happy about that."

Sherlock looked at him as he then asked him, "Why didn't you tell me before?"

"Because it's not something that you would tell someone unless it comes up. I couldn't just go to you and say, okay you know all that about by the way both my parents are dead, my mother through illness and my dad was brutally murdered when I was sixteen," he rolled his eyes.

"No but obviously it still bothers you, it did around this time last year, so he died around this time some twenty years ago?" he guessed.

"Yes, he did, Harry hates me because dad left me the house, she rants about it all the time. She fucked off and didn't get it, but the bank account from mum, I got dads, I only got the house because I always wanted it and Harry just wanted to be rid of it," he added.

"So this case reminds you a lot of what happened?" Sherlock asked him.

"Yeah it does, in more ways than you think," he told him.

Sherlock frowned, "In what ways?"

"Right, the police said the guy got in and killed my dad, he didn't take anything from the house. Well, he did take one thing and that was a picture of me, my parents and Harry before mum passed away. I was a teen, just like the others as well. It's hard to disassociate it from my past because…" he sighed with a shrug, not even knowing why.

Sherlock could easily deduce the reason, "it wasn't solved was it?"

John shook his head, "no and they said that there was a chance that it would never be solved and they might just be right. My dads murdered was one of eight that were the same in our area. Eight dads murdered and left behind a teenage son or daughter, sometimes alone and sometimes with an older sibling that didn't like at home. We were the one to find them," he told him.

"And you think that now twenty years later, helping, in this case, might just solve your dad," Sherlock said with understanding in his voice.

"I know it isn't possible Sherlock, my head knows that. It was twenty years ago and two hundred miles away in Leeds," he told him knowing what was going on thanks to his talk with mike at the lab.

"John," Sherlock called, getting the man's attention, "When we have solved this case, how about we take a look at your fathers and the others. See if we can't shed new light on it," he told him.

John blinked and looked at him, "do you mean it?"

Sherlock gave him a smile, "of course I do, we shall have to talk to Lestrade, but I have no doubt that he would be willing to help as well."

"I know, I've got to talk to him and tell him about it, was going to do it at the same time. But…" he trailed off as he gave a moment's thought to his next words, "I think it was better just telling you on your own for now. I can tell Greg another time," he told him.

Sherlock nodded his head, "very well. I will ask him to see if he can get in touch with Leeds police and see if they have any files about the cases. And to send me a copy. Though I don't mind the thought of going there and actually looked around the place."

"I still have the house, I cleaned it all up but it's still the same, mostly. You can have a look around, but it's been twenty years, there won't be evidence," he told him.

"No but I might be able to recreate the scene, which might help a lot actually," he smiled to him.

"Thanks, Sherlock," he told him.

"You're welcome, now how about I warm our dinner up?" he said as he stood up, he wasn't really hungry, but he knew that if he had something to eat then John would as well.

John nodded his head, "yeah, finally got that out of the way, I feel a bit better for it, so I don't mind eating," he told him.

"Good," he nodded as the two of them got and went into the kitchen to warm up their dinner. The conversation turned away from the case since Sherlock decide it wasn't a good idea to talk about just yet and they talked about other things, like the work John had been doing at the clinic. John was thankful that there was something other than the case for them to talk about, he was in no frame of mind to try and keep track of anything that might help them just yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the awesome comments and kudos. Hope you enjoy this chapter.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own Sherlock, just having a little fun while I can.
> 
> All mistakes are my own.

Chapter Twelve

John was back at work, two days after telling Sherlock about his dad. Sherlock was alone, sitting in the living room of 221B and bored. He had nothing to do, and he had promised John that he wouldn't start work on John's case until the one they were working on was finished. John didn't want the victim's families to go without an answer like he had done. Sherlock grinned, John said he couldn't investigate the case, it didn't mean he couldn't research.

Sherlock typed in the password for John's laptop and started to search the date that John had given and the location. He sighed when all he was able to find was a few article. There was not much information about the crimes in them. There was nothing that he could work with until he got the case files. He logged into his email and started to go through them, wondering if there was anything interesting that would calm his mind down until John came back home.

Sherlock flopped back on the sofa two hours later, he had nothing to do once more, he had solved a number of cases via email. They had been so easy, didn't even need to leave the flat for any of them. All he needed was the internet in one of the cases and the rest all the information was in the emails.

Sherlock jumped up from the sofa, an idea forming in his mind as he went to the coat rack and grabbed his coat and put it on He smiled heading down the stairs, he made a quick stop in Speedy's to grab something and then waved down a taxi outside. He gave the driver a familiar destination and settled back as it drove away from Baker Street.

XxXxX

John smiled at the little girl he had just looked over, she was fine, just a slight cough and cold. The door closed behind his patient and her mother. John glanced at the clock in the room and sighed. It was past lunch time and he had forgotten to bring something with him. He would have to stop at the local cafe to pick something up for lunch. Sher had been trying to get John to tell him about his father's murder. John would love nothing more that to have it solved now. He didn't think it should take over their current case. John walked out of his office and into the reception room. He blinked as the doors opened and a familiar figured walked in.

"What are you doing here Sherlock?" John asked him walking over to the man and grabbed an arm, leading him to the staff room.

"I thought it would be nice of me to come by and give you this," he smiled as he pulled out the sandwich that he had brought for John.

John frowned, puzzled, Sherlock had very rarely done this. When he did, it was usually because he had done something that warranted John's anger. John looked at him, narrowing his gaze asking, "Now, what have you done, you don't normally do this?"

"I haven't done anything to warrant the question for once," Sherlock answered him.

John shook his head, sighing, "I don't know if I believe it or not, but I'll let it slide for now. I just hope it stays that way when I get back home after my shift," he then looked at the man and said, "Thanks, though, it's my favorite," he chuckled.

Sherlock smiled, "I know."

John made the two of them some tea and sat down, he was the only one on break at that moment Sarah wouldn't have hers for another five minutes. John set down the mug for Sherlock and then sat down. He looked Sherlock over and smiled a little, there was another reason the man was here, he knew that. He had known him for long enough by now.

"So," John said as he took a bit out of the egg and cress sandwich, "What are you doing here, I know you, Sherlock," he queried.

Sherlock took a sip of his tea as he replied, "I'm a little bored, there is nothing to do, there are no experiments that I am doing at the moment that need my constant attention."

"Right, so you come here just to give me a sandwich?" he asked him, taking another bite.

"Well, I had nothing else to do. Though I could always look more into your father's case," he said, looking a little hopeful.

John shook his head, "No," he told him, "I told you that we need to concentrate on the one we are already doing," he sighed.

Sherlock pouted, "But then I would have something to do."

"No Sherlock, why don't you check your emails, maybe you'd be able to find something that could take a day or two with them?" he made the suggestion.

Sherlock shook his head, "I've already done them all, so boring John, didn't even need to leave the flat, only had to check the internet once and the rest was solved by just reading the emails themselves," he sulked.

"Any more thoughts on our current case then?" John asked, grasping at straws.

"No, there is nothing that I can do. He needs to make a mistake, as soon as he does we should be able to find him," he answered him softly.

"I can't think of anything for you to do then," John gave a little shrug as the door to the room opened and Sarah walked in.

"Hey John," she smiled as she saw him and then saw Sherlock, "Afternoon Sherlock, how are you?" she asked a smile on her face at seeing the man.

"Afternoon Sarah," Sherlock greeted back, "I need John for something if you don't mind me stealing him away for a while," he said with his most charming smile.

Sarah shook her head, "Doesn't work on me Sherlock, I know you remember," she smiled going over to the small counter made herself a cup of tea, "What do you need him for?" she asked. She couldn't help but be a little curious, she loved to listen to John when he was telling her about the mad cases that the two of them took. And what Sherlock got up to at home.

"He doesn't need me at all," John said before Sherlock could say anything.

Sarah gave a chuckle, "I gathered," she told them, "but then again you keep him entertained don't you John," she smirked over at him.

John looked at her opened mouthed, "I don't!" he protested.

"You do, as soon as he asks, you go. I can see why he sounds like a lot of fun," she laughed as she looked over at Sherlock, "How about we go and have a little fun, Sherlock. Leave the old fuddy-duddy to his patients, it would be nice to go out and have the rest of the day off for a little excitement," she playfully suggested.

Sherlock could hear the playfulness as he stood up. He pulled her from her chair and spun her around, dancing around the room with her, "Ah, a woman after my own heart, but I have to say," he said his voice going to a whisper, "it has been taken by another."

Sarah looked at him and gave a quick glance over to John, who hadn't heard the last bit as she said, "I know, and so has theirs. You should do something about it."

Sherlock smiled and bowed as he let her go and returned to his chair, "So John, are you going to come with me, or do I have to drag you?" he asked him.

"Oh go on John, you've only got three more patients today, and there doesn't seem to be any drops ins, so we should be fine to cover them, "I know I shouldn't, but well, it keeps you happy," she told him a soft smile on her face.

John looked at his friend. They had tried dating, but in the end, they were better friends than lovers. He smiled at her, "I know, but let me do the last three and then I'll go. I will do my work first, I took the job because I still want to practice medicine you know," he told her and then looked at Sherlock, "So you'll have to wait all right."

Sherlock gave a little pout but knew that John would be stubborn about it, "very well, I shall wait. Go now and see them and Sarah and I shall have a nice talk," he said with a wave of his hand as Sarah sat back down at the table.

"I know I am no you John, but I do enjoy talking with Sherlock. I learn some really interesting things," she smiled as John looked between the two of them and then sighed.

John ate the rest of his sandwich before leaving the two, he dreaded to think what they would end up talking about. He frowned, he couldn't help but wonder what the little whispers were about when the two were dancing. He gave a sigh as he entered his office and called his next patient in a little earlier than their scheduled time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the comments and kudos, you guys are awesome! I hope that you have enjoyed this chapter as well.
> 
> Though I would like to know what you think about Sarah and Sherlock's interaction?


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own Sherlock, just having a little fun.
> 
> Sorry for taking so long to update, been busy with things. I am going to be updating my fics on Sundays from now on.

Chapter Thirteen

John was at the desk in the living room, slowly typing away. After leaving the Clinic two days ago, Sherlock got called out on another case.. It was only a small one, but it was something to keep Sherlock from shouting 'Bored!' all the time and maybe even shooting at the walls again. Mrs. Hudson had not been impressed by it all when she had found out. John looked over at Sherlock for a second and then back to screen as he smiled.

Sherlock watched him with narrowed eyes asking him, "And what romantic drivel are you writing this time?"

"Nothing much," John chuckled, he enjoyed teasing Sherlock a little through the blog. It was one of the only way he could actually get the other to respond to anything at times.

Sherlock didn't believe him as he got up and walked over. He started reading what John was typing over his shoulder, "I didn't save your life John, I just stopped you from getting a frying pan to the head," he told him, huffing as he went back to the sofa and flopped down on it.

John shook his head, "It was a cast iron pan, and it would have hurt me quite badly with how hard she had swung it," he told him, "So yes, I thank you for it."

"Then I suppose you are welcome, I need my blogger after all," he smiled to him.

John chuckled and nodded, "Maybe, but you did just fine before I came along," he told him.

"But not as well. Before we met I had very few cases. Now, because of your blog, I have more than I can handle at times. We are sometimes working on more than one at a time to keep up. I know I have a lot to be thankful to you for," Sherlock told him, the smile on his face becoming soft.

"Maybe," John said, still a little unsure.

"It is. I'm a genius I should know," he told him. It could be shocking how low John would often think of himself at times. It had shocked Sherlock the first time he had found the older man's insecurities.

"All right," John said with a dry chuckle, "It was an okay case, though I'm glad you only had a bruise after it all," he said softly.

"Yes, and in a day or two that will leave as well," Sherlock said, "What have you decided to call this one?" he asked.

"I'm unsure at the moment, thinking about using The Rock Cake Caper," he told him, "don't know if it sounds right," he smiled.

"Well, my opinion doesn't really matter and people will still read it anyway," Sherlock told him a smile on his face. He stared at the ceiling for a moment, "Bored," he huffed.

John chuckled and rolled his eyes, "As always. You just finished a case of a maid and a cook trying to smuggle the families jewels out in cake," he shook his head.

"Well it wasn't a very good case, only took me a day to do," he told him, huffing again.

John shook his head, "sometimes there is no pleasing you is there?"

"Yes, there is, you could call up Lestrade and tell him about your father's case so I can start the groundwork for it. There is only so much that I can do with the Internet," Sherlock suggested, glancing over at John.

John went quiet at the sudden mentioned of his father, "Sherlock I told you I won't be doing that for some time. We need to finish this murder case before we work on a case with a serial killer all right," he told him, hoping that he would drop it.

Sherlock looked at him, "I'm sorry John," he apologised, standing up and going over. He placed his hands on John's shoulders, "I'm sorry, I should not have brought it up like that. It was rather insensitive of me. I just want to help you solve it so that you can finally have the closure that you deserve."

John's shoulders relaxed under Sherlock's hands and sighed, "I know that Sherlock, but you can't do it like that. I had finally put his death out of my mind for a while."

Sherlock nodded his head, "I know, and I'm sorry, now go back to writing up the Cake Theft case," told him as he quickly hugged John from behind and went back over to the sofa.

John was a little startled at the hug "Thank you," he said softly glancing over at Sherlock, he smiled and went back to typing

Sherlock smiled as he lay back on the sofa and thought about John and his father. Sherlock couldn't help but wonder what John's father looked like. Did John take after the man in looks and behaviour, or after his mother. Or was he a blend of both his parents. The door to the flat opened and Mrs. Hudson walked into the room, tray in her hands.

"Hello boys, I was making some tea for myself and I thought you both might like some as well," she smiled as she set up three cups and handed them out, taking the last for herself before sitting down on John's usual chair. She had done this a few times over the last three weeks, she wanted company after finding out that the man she had been seeing had turned out to be a bit of a Lothario. She had not been impressed, and neither had the chopping board she had thrown at his head when he tried to talk his way out of the lies he had told her.

"Thank you so much, Mrs. Hudson," John smiled to her taking a sip of the hot liquid.

"Welcome, how are you both? I know you were out yesterday with a cas., You are both all right aren't you?" she asked, as concern laced her voice.

Sherlock nodded sitting up, "Of course Mrs. Hudson, we're both fine," he reassured her, smiling.

She smiled at them both, "Good to hear." She watched the two of them over the lip of her china cup. There was something going on between the two of them. The two of them were beginning to act differently with each other. She could observe things just as much as Sherlock at times., though not on his level. Sherlock had been watching John a lot more, and it wasn't the usual observations the Consulting Detective normally did. There was worry in his steely eyes. John, on the other hand, had become quieter, more reflective on things, taken to looking far off, as though he was worlds away. She couldn't help but worry. "What about the case you are working on at the moment? I know you've been working with that nice Detective friend of yours," she queried.

"Yes, we are," Sherlock answered her, "Someone is finding their way into homes and murdering the parent that is inside. Leaving them to be found by their teenage children, when they return home from school," he finished He glanced at John, and could see the pain on his face before it was quickly hidden. "It brings up a few bad memories," he added, not telling who's back memories.

"Oh dear, are you sure you should be investigating this case then?" She asked, worry in her warm eyes once again.

"Yes," John was the one to answer her, "We need to. It wouldn't be right if we didn't try our best and catch this killer," he told her, "I know that my dad would want me to do make sure no one else will go through what I did." His voice was barely a whispered but Mrs. Hudson heard every single word.

"Oh John," she cried getting up and going over to him, "You?" she asked, sorrow in her eyes and voice.

"Yeah, My dad was murdered in the same way. I came home to… to find him dead in the living room. It's hard, but I know that he would want me to help on this case, to work with Sherlock," he said as he looked over to Sherlock. His vision was blocked when Mrs. Hudson wrapped her thin arms around him and held him, comforting him.

Sherlock smiled at Mrs. Hudson but nodded as soon as John was able to see him again. He understood what John was trying to convey to him with his words. Sherlock would no longer stop himself from asking John to help and looked at the body. Maybe the Doctor would be able to see something he couldn't.

Mrs. Hudson went back to her chair and talked with the two of them for another hour before she had to leave for her book club. John finished typing up the case before he posted it after going through it one last time for any mistakes. Sherlock watched John, "I will be asking you to look at the body next time," Sherlock informed him.

John nodded, "I wish with all my heart that there isn't another one. But we both know there will be," he sighed.

"Yes, and I believe that could be in the next couple of days," he said as John got up and headed for the kitchen. Sherlock reached out and grabbed John's hand as he went past and pulled him on top of him. Sherlock wrapped his arms around him and held him. "I know, I wish it too. I do not want the memories to return for you," he told him as John couldn't help but take comfort from his taller friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the amazing comments and kudos. I do hope that you have enjoyed this chapter as well.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own Sherlock, just having some fun.
> 
> Sorry for taking so long in getting this up. It's been a bad few weeks. We had to say goodbye to my dog Benji, who was part of the inspiration for the Guardians in the Harsh Reality Series. Not only that but I also lost a friend suddenly.
> 
> Thanks go to Madyamisam for the edit, any remaining mistakes are my own.

Chapter Fourteen

John walked up the stairs and into the living room of 221B. He was home, he had just finished a half shift at the clinic. Sarah had talked about the case that they had finished, the Rock Cake Caper, Sarah wanted to know everything, including the things that hadn't made it into the blog, as she knew that they didn't always put up everything that had happened to them.

John gave a little sigh as he walked into the kitchen and put the kettle on. Sherlock walked into the kitchen and smiled a little as he saw the man there. He hated it when John had to work, he always felt as though there was nothing in the house at all. As though he was alone once more.

"I've decided that I will talk to Lestrade tomorrow about my dad," John said quietly.

Sherlock smiled a little but then let it didn't want John to think he was happy about his father's death, "I thank you, I would like to get a least the basics of it as soon as possible," he replied stood behind John and wrapped his arms around him.

John froze for a moment and then relaxed as he turned around and hugged Sherlock back. He had been thinking about it all day and had decided on the way home that he would do something. He knew that Sherlock wanted to work on it and find out everything about the case. John remembered a lot about his dad but didn't know anything about the others that had been killed by the same killer, "I know," he said as he leaned his head against Sherlock's shoulder and sighed.

Sherlock ran his hands through John's hair as he whispered, "I will do all I can to bring you the closure that you need," Sherlock sighed a little.

John smiled and nodded as he pulled back, "I know you will, I never doubted that you woul"

Sherlock looked down at him with a puzzled frown, "Why didn't you come and ask me earlier, I could had done something," he asked.

"Because I didn't know if I wanted you to do this case or to even let you know what had happened to my dad. I knew that if I ever did tell you that you would want to help, because you are my best friend, you're ev…" he trailed off.

Sherlock stared gathering all the visual cues while waiting for John to continue. When he didn't he nodded in understanding. , "All right," he replied , "You mean the same to me John."

John smiled as the kettle boiled and he was about to pour the tea as Sherlock phone began to buzz as a text came through. Both of them shared a look of trepidation and then looked at the phone. They knew what it was about; they had been dreading it since the moment they realised that there was around two weeks before each kill.

"I hate this, I really hate this," John hissed as he moved away from the kettle.

"I know John," Sherlock wanting to reach out and soothe away the anger that the older man was feeling.

"This should be done by now, it should have been solved by now," John ranted on.

Sherlock flinched at the words even though he knew that John didn't mean for them to imply his failings at being a step behind the killer's movements, "Sorry," he said, feeling guilt gnawing at him since he was so heavily involved in this investigations yet his deductions, no matter how clever they seemed, had completely missed the connections.

John turned to look at him mid rant of how it must've sounded to the consulting detective, "Oh god, Sherlock," he went over to him and wrapped his arms around him, "I'm sorry, I just meant that I hate knowing that he is out there and we won't be able to find anything out until he makes a mistake," he explained as he rest his head on Sherlock's shoulder once again.

Sherlock wrapped his own arms around him as he said softly, "I know, I do know, it's just…" he trailed off trying to think of what he could say, "I want to resolve this as well, I know that this case is really getting to you, it is hurting you knowing that there are going to be others out there that are going to be in the same position you were in twenty years ago."

John nodded, "It does hurt, I have to admit, but I just want this to be done so there would be no more."

Sherlock nodded his head to him and gave a reassuring smile, "I will do what I can to make sure that we solve this case."

"I know you will, never doubted you, just doubt that we will get what we need in time before another victim."

"Then let me get this?" Sherlock answered awkwardly pointing at the phone.

"Oh right, yes, yes you better answer the text now. Greg will be trying to call us soon if you don't answer. Well, calling me," he grinned, trying to lighten the mood a little, he knew that it was going to be hard going there and seeing the past in front of him again.

Sherlock nodded his head and grabbed his phone, he read the text and sent one back. Didn't take long for one to come back giving him the address of the latest crime scene.

"Shall we go?" John asked..

Sherlock nodded his head, "Yes, and if at any point you need to get out, you do so. I know that this is really getting to you and if you want to leave this one out, I wouldn't blame you."

John shook his head, "No, I won't do that, we are doing this together, even though I don't think I am helping at all with this."

"You do, without even knowing it I think more about the case since I know that you are working with me and you do help in other ways," he protested.

John gave a little sigh, "if you say so," he told him.

They walked out of the flat, grabbing their coats as they walked past them.

"Are you going out?" Mrs Hudson asked as she saw them, she had even cleaning.

"Yes Mrs Hudson, we have another crime to go and see to," Sherlock told her, there was none of the usual excitement in his voice as he looked at her.

She looked over at John and smiled sadly, "Oh dear," she went over to him and pulled her into a hug, "If you need to just come back here, it would be fine and we shall have a nice cup of tea," she told him.

John smiled at her, though he was feeling a little out of sorts, since he was being told to go if he needed it. It made him feel a little useless as well, "I'll be fine Mrs Hudson," he reassured her.

She smiled as she let him go, "if you say so dear, now go and find this killer, he needs to be caught," she said as she carried on with her cleaning.

John and Sherlock smiled and then left the house. Sherlock quickly called a taxi and smiled as one quickly pulled up.

"All right," he nodded slightly as he went quiet as he watched the streets going past.

Sherlock watched him, he couldn't help but worry about him. This was hard on the older man, in more ways than one. He had hoped to be able to get John to stay behind, but he knew that the other wouldn't do that. He was too determined to try and help solve this case since he wanted to put some closure to those that were now like him. Sherlock gave a little sigh as they began to near the crime scene. He didn't want to get there just yet. He wanted to wait a little longer, let John settled himself a little so that he would be able to do what he needed, especially since he had promised to let John actually do something this time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the awesome comments and kudos. I hope you have enjoyed this chapter as well.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own Sherlock, just having some fun.
> 
> Sorry for taking so long, real life is busy and I was doing some writing for some of my fics to get ahead a little.

* * *

**Chapter Fifteen**

The taxi pulled up near the crime scene, not able to get any closer thanks to the number of cars that were there as well as the Forensics Unit van blocking the way. John quickly paid the fare as they got out and walked further down the street and towards the blue and white police tape. Lestrade was waiting for them this time, as he had done a few times before. He decided it was better than leaving Donovan to greet them as he didn't want another murder on his hands.

"Hey Greg," John greeted with a small wave of his hand.

"John," he smiled to him, already seeing the pinched look on his face.

"So what have we go?" John asked as he and Sherlock ducked under the tape that Lestrade was holding up for them.

"Victim is 38-year-old Lloyd Oliver's, he was found by his son Steven this afternoon after he came home from band practice. The same as the others," he told John as Sherlock walked before them, not paying attention to them at all.

Lestrade shook his head, heading into the house. John and Sherlock now followed him as Sherlock began to take note of what he could see. John went pale as he walked in, this time there was no mistaking anything. This was too much like the others, there was the same odd feeling in his stomach as he walked into the living room. The way the pictures were all set out around the victim was the same, the glass smashed, but at one point there was a gap, telling him that a picture was missing.

John closed his eyes for a moment and he was back in his own home at sixteen. His mind let the picture form of his living room and of his dad. Lying on his back, eyes dead to the world and a pool of blood around him. Off shots of blood around the walls as well, as though it was in a starburst pattern coming away from where his father lay.

"John," Sherlock called to him as he saw the pale man standing near the doorway.

John opened his eyes, taking a shuddering breath as he looked to Sherlock, "yeah?"

"Are you sure you are all right for this?" he asked him, concern in his eyes.

John gave a small smile as he nodded his head, "Yes Sherlock, I'm fine, now shall we?" he said as he waved his hand towards the room.

Sherlock watched him for a moment and then went to look around the room. Lestrade walked over to John and stood by him for a bit. Looking just as worried as Sherlock had when he had seen John almost spacing out as he went into his mind, reliving his past. Lestrade didn't say anything, which John was grateful for as they waited for Sherlock to finish.

"John are you up to taking a look at the body?" Sherlock asked from where he was now kneeling.

John nodded his head, "yeah, if I can't then I'll go out promise," he said as he could see the warning look in the man's eyes.

Sherlock nodded and John walked over to him and knelt down, putting gloves on as he went. He examined the body, going paler by the second as he took in the injuries that the man had. He looked to Sherlock as he said, "exsanguinations," he then got up and went back to Lestrade, taking the gloves off as he went.

Sherlock could see that there was more to it than that as he stood up and followed him over to the two men, "I know there is more," he said softly to John. John nodded his head slightly.

"Right, so what have you got Sherlock because I tell you now that we need to do something about this guy, people are gonna start panicking soon," he said as he looked at the man.

Sherlock nodded his head, "Right, we now have two in the room. There is a slight void with the spray, which was done on purpose. Everything about the scene is staged in a way. Everything, from the blood splatter on the walls, to the way the pictures have been carefully smashed and placed around the room, the place is messy because that is what it needs to be like. It's all done to please someone else."

"So, we have two killers now?" Lestrade asked as he began to write everything down.

Sherlock shook his head, "The one there, was just observing, he didn't do anything, just told the other what he was supposed to do. He was making sure that it was done the way he wanted, obviously, the last two crimes were not the way he wanted them to be. This is what he wanted, and this is what we'll find if there is another one," Sherlock finished as he looked between the two of them.

John looked at them and nodded, "All right, so we have some one else, but if he wanted it done the way he wanted, then why didn't he just do it himself, or herself?" he asked him.

Sherlock paused for a moment as he began to think, "Hmmm," he hummed, he looked to John as he said with a small smile, "Good question, he can't, there is something about him that makes him unable to do it, so he is having to have someone else do it, and it is obviously male John. Both of them are male," he told him.

"Anything about them at all?" Lestrade asked, hoping for something that will be able to help them at all.

"The youngest is late teens early twenties, I would say the man's son, or very close relative, being groomed for this all his life. You might find some instances of torture of animals, but hesitant in harming them. He was made to practice, to get things right to his father's specifications," he told them as he thought a little more, "The second male is older, around forty at least, maybe slightly older. He would have had trouble with his father when in his mid teens, no mother on the scene for him. He is taking his frustrations out on these victims, but I don't know what could be wrong with him to cause him to just stand there," he sighed, feeling annoyed that he had been able to gather that much so far but nothing else.

John gave a little shiver at that as he asked him, "So what else have you found?"

"Just some more soil looks a little different than the one at the last scene, so it might yield some clue as to who we are looking for, or even where we are to look," he told him as he held up the little vial that he had collected the soil sample in.

"Sherlock," Lestrade groaned and rolled his eyes, "I told you not to do that," he told him with a shake of his head.

"Anderson is useless in this and you know it Lestrade, I've only taken a small sample, there are others still in the house, so you can get the data from that," he huffed a little, especially at the thought of Anderson being able to figure out where the soil came from. He turned to John and asked him, "What about the victim?" he asked him, knowing it would ease John to call the man that instead of just referring to him as a body.

"He was partially incapacitated by the blow to the head, after that, he put up a little fight before he was hit again. Then he was stabbed in several times, each time the man would have pulled the knife out to create the spray at a speed, it was done on purpose like Sherlock said, otherwise you wouldn't get that type of pattern unless it was a frenzied attack or planned to be seen as such," John said as he looked to Sherlock.

Sherlock and Lestrade nodded, "Right," Sherlock said as he looked at John who was still pale, "I think we should leave the scene."

John nodded and began to walk out. Lestrade looked to Sherlock and asked him, "What's going on Sherlock?"

"That isn't for me to say, this is something about John, I know that he had plans to meet you tomorrow, he would be telling you then, so please, let me keep the confidence of my friend," he said as he then walked past him and into the hallway, following John as he walked outside.

Lestrade sighed and shook his head, "Give me the strength to deal with those two stubborn idiots," he said as he then followed John and Sherlock out of the house and into the front garden. Lestrade winced as he saw that the press and TV people were there already, he sent one of the officers over to deal with them, that he would give nothing out and then joined John and Sherlock.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the awesome comments and kudos, I hope you have enjoyed this chapter as well.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own Sherlock.  
> Sorry for the long wait, life is kicking me as normal, but I am trying to get back into things.

Chapter Sixteen

John looked around as he walked outside and he could see the young son standing there. He looked so lost to John, and he knew just what the young teen was feeling that was as well. He walked over to him, a soft smile on his face full of understanding and sympathy. Sherlock followed him as did Lestrade, not wanting a scene to be caused if Sherlock decided to go back to his old way of talking to people.

"Hello," John greeted softly, calling the teens attention to him instead of the police that was walking around.

"Hi," he said with a painfully shy look on his face.

"I'm John and this is Sherlock, we've been asked to come and help on this case, and I'm hoping that it would be all right to ask you a question or two," he said politely, his voice nice and soft.

"Sure, if it helps," he said, John could see that the teen wasn't all there, John understood that the teen was feeling numb at what had happened.

"I just want to ask, would your dad let anyone into the house that he didn't know?" Sherlock asked him first.

"No," he said with a subtle shake of his head, "he wouldn't though…" he paused for a moment taking a steadying breath, "If he thought that someone was in trouble, he would let them in, I know that. He always did it," he told them both as he looked at them briefly before looking back to the ground.

"Thank you for answering that one," Sherlock smiled to him, "Was there anything missing that you could tell?"

Steven shrugged for a moment, "I… I don't know, I can't," he said as he began to break down.

John went over to him and held him, "It's all right Steven if you can't remember it's all right."

"The pic, one of us all together, the last one," he said as he looked up his eyes wide, "I didn't see it, it was always on the wall, but it wasn't and I don't remember seeing it… it around dad either," he gulped a little as he began to shake once more, "It's of me, Mum, dad and Peter, before he died, mum never wanted another picture taken after that one. Peter was my little brother, he died a year before mum," he told them as John carried on holding him, keeping him as calm as he could.

"Thank you for telling us, and I'm sorry for your loss," Sherlock said to him, looking at John.

"Will…" he trailed off for a moment as he looked at John, "will this ever get better?"

"It never does, I know what it is like to be in your shoes, I lost my mum to cancer and six years later I lost my dead to a killer," he told him, "it eases a little, and it helps if you remember the good times you had with them all," John told him softly.

Lestrade's eyes went wide as he heard what John was telling the teen, "Did you know that John's dad was murdered?" he asked Sherlock softly.

Sherlock shook his head, "Not until this case came about, and it only did so, because this is bringing up bad memories for him," he told him, his voice just as soft.

"Is this what he wanted to tell me about?" he asked him.

Sherlock nodded his head, "Yes it is, he was going to tell you, and how this really reminds John of the death of his father."

"Who was it that killed him, do you know?" he then asked as he watched John talk with Steven.

Sherlock shook his head, "The killer was never caught, and the only thing I know is that it is similar to this case and there were eight murders in total. A serial killer that was never caught. I have offered to go through the old files as soon as we can get them, I want to see if I can offer a little peace to him."

Lestrade looked at him and smiled, "And to think before you even met John you wouldn't have cared even enough to do this case. He has changed you for the better Sherlock and you have to admit that."

Sherlock nodded his head, "I know he has."

"I'll see what I can do about getting the old files. I just need the names of the victims or victim, and the DI that was in charge of the case and of course where it happened," he told Sherlock.

"I will see if John will tell you everything," he said as John began to walk over to them.

John had finished talking with Steven, giving him his number in case he wanted someone to talk to that knew what he was going through. Just like John he was going to be looked after by an Uncle. Harry had disappeared for almost a year after their father had been murdered. John still believed that she only came back into his life to make him miserable. He looked at them and could see the slight look of shock on Lestrade face, he knew in that moment he had heard what he had been talking to Steven about.

"Sherlock gave me a little information, why didn't you say something, I would have left you be with this one," he said softly.

"I want to help Greg, I need to, I think. If I can give them a bit of peace and the closure that I never had, then I think it will be worth it in the end," he told him, smiling.

"If you say so, but you know Sherlock and I will be fine if you want to step out for this one," he told him, making sure that he understood.

"I know," he told them shaking his head.

"How about we go and tell Lestrade everything about your father John, that way he can get started on getting the old case files together," Sherlock suggested.

Lestrade looked at him and then nodded his head, "Yeah, that might be a good idea. We can go down to the Yard if you want. I'm almost done here, shouldn't take me long, already got them set up with forensics, the coroner is here now to deal with the victim, and Sally is also here so that she can take over the scene," he said as he looked at John, knowing that it was really up to him if he wanted to do so.

"All right, I don't mind doing it now," he nodded in agreement. He looked over to Sherlock and could see he was in his head thinking again, "Sherlock, what is it?"

"It's this second man, why did he have to be there, why did he have to make sure that it was done the way he wanted?" he asked.

"Maybe he had done something like this before, and because he can no longer do so, he is getting his son to do it for him. You said that it was recorded the one time, as soon as he saw that the next time he went with him," John said, throwing something out there.

"Could that really be the case, but how long ago would it be, I know there have been a few like this in the past, but nothing this specific," Lestrade said as he thought of all the break in murders that have happened over the years.

"Then it might be a good idea to go to the Yard after this, we can have a look through the database and see if there are any matches for the MO," Sherlock smiled as he looked to the older man.

Lestrade sighed and nodded, "all right, I'll send word to get something started about this now," he told him as he pulled out his phone to call it in.

John looked to him, "Sherlock, I think they might be connected, the scene in there was really similar to my dad's, the blood up the walls all coming from the victim, the pictures and the way they were carefully crushed and placed, it was all the same, it was as though I had walked right into my nightmares," he said.

Sherlock looked at him and nodded his head, "Are you sure that is the case?"

John nodded, "Yes," he told him, he could feel himself begin to shake a little.

Sherlock saw it and didn't care as he stepped a little closer and wrapped his arms around John and held him. John relaxed into it and held Sherlock back, "Then we shall tell Lestrade at the Yard and see what he thinks as well," he told him softly.

John nodded against him as Lestrade came back over, looking a little embarrassed as he gave a small cough. The two parted and the walked towards Lestrade car. Lestrade got in and Sherlock seeing that John needed to get away decided for one he would get in as well. They were soon driving away from the scene and heading towards New Scotland Yard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the comments and the kudos, hoping that you have enjoyed this chapter as well.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you have enjoyed the first of around 32 chapters.


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